GrowingMinneapolis, News from City of Minneapolis Community Planning and Economic Development

City of Minneapolis sent this bulletin at 07/10/2015 11:08 AM CDT

July 2015

Events

Open Streets: Northeast

Sunday, July 12, Noon-6pmNortheast Minneapolis

Open Street events create miles of safe, car-free
streets so that residents of all ages can walk, bike, participate in
spontaneous play activities, and get to know one another. Event is free and open
to the public.More
Information

Housing Opportunity
2015: Better Places, Better Lives

You will gain the tools, knowledge and connections for
developing exceptional affordable homes that support broader opportunities for
low-income families. Please email or
call 1-800-321-5011 with questions.More InformationRegistration
Link

Midtown Walking Tour

Lake Street has been home to generations of new
immigrants from the 19th Century through today. Take a closer look at the small
businesses and cultural organizations they established in their pursuit of the
American Dream.More
InformationPurchase
a Ticket

10th Year Annual FLOW Northside Arts Crawl

July 23-July 25

Thursday &
Friday: Plymouth Avenue near Penn Avenue North

Saturday: West Broadway
from the Mississippi River to Penn Avenue and on North 2nd Street
from 16th to the 24th Streets.

Open Streets: East Lake Street

Four
Sisters Farmers Market

Every Sunday, Aug. 9 to Sept. 2711am-3pmCorner of Franklin and Bloomington Avenue in
Minneapolis

Four Sisters Farmers Market is an
Indigenous-centered food market, focused on both Indigenous and hyper-local
foods from Phillips and surrounding neighborhoods.More Information

News

Minneapolis City
Council Approves Sunday Growler Sales

On June 5th, Minneapolis City Council approved
the sale of growlers on Sundays and is one of the first cities in the state to
approve Sunday growler sales, which city leaders say will support the burgeoning
craft brewing industry.

Starting June 14, brewpubs and taprooms can begin selling
the 64-ounce refillable jugs of beer on Sundays. The measure, which passed
13-0, also allows restaurants to serve bloody marys and other drinks starting
at 8 a.m., rather than 10 a.m., on Sundays.Read
More

Minneapolis Considers
'Innovation Districts' to Boost Development

The Minneapolis Planning Commission will consider
designating "Innovation Districts" to boost development. Council
Member Cam Gordon has proposed two resolutions tied to the idea, including
designating a section of Southeast Minneapolis near the University of Minnesota
as the first such district.Read
More

Minneapolis Adjusts
Rules for Secondhand Shops

A City Council committee voted to update the city's rules for stores that sell used goods, lowering some licensing fees and doing away with some
restrictions that had lumped many types of businesses in with pawn shops. Other
changes include updated rules for the types of purchases and sales store owners
must report to the city.Read More

No Longer Bottled Up:
Craft Distilleries Bullish on Growth

About 20 distilleries are either open now in Minnesota or
expect to launch within a year.Read
More

Minneapolis Unemployment Rate Drops in May

TheMay 2015 Minneapolis
unemployment rate dropped .1% from April to 3.5%, resulting in just over 8,100
residents unemployed and actively seeking employment. The federal government’s
estimate of the Minneapolis labor force continues to rise, up to 232,785 –
adding over 6,000 residents to the labor force since January. The
year-over-year trend for May shows both increased labor force participation
(adding nearly 4,000 to the labor force) and lower unemployment by .2%, both
indicating confidence in the local and regional economy.

Minnesota Named as "America's Top State for Business"

Although it placed sixth in 2014, Minnesota has moved to the
top spot this year as “America’s Top State for Business” from CNBC. CNBC’s
annual study ranks all 50 states on 60 measures of competiveness, separated
into ten categories. Minnesota received the highest overall score this year
across the ten categories, including the economy due to Minnesota’s low
unemployment rate of 3.8 percent. Since 2011, Minnesota’s growing number of
businesses has added nearly 189,000 jobs. The highly educated workforce earned
Minnesota second place in education, and the low crime rate, clean air and
water, and access to quality health care, made Minnesota third in the quality
of life category. Read
More

The mile wasn’t always lined with unique and creative
businesses selling items ranging from vintage clothing to antique furniture, to
collectables, to hand made gifts designed using locally sourced items. Prior to
2012, a zoning ordinance prohibited secondhand goods stores from being within 1000
feet of each other. City staff worked with Council Member Glidden’s office to
lift the restrictions and make it easier for secondhand stores to operate. Once
the ordinance was amended, new life was brought to once vacant storefronts.

Now that the shops could co-locate, it was time to work on a
unifying branding strategy. With the
help of Seward Redesign and the Longfellow Business
Association, the shops were awarded a City of Minneapolis Great streets grant in 2014 to launch their official identity and the campaign
“Shop the Minnehaha Mile” was launched including a printed guide map and Facebook Page.

This year, faced with construction along Minnehaha Avenue
from Minnehaha Parkway to 38th Street, the Milers sought a second
Great Streets grant to further raise the visibility of the emerging vintage
district and to remind customers that businesses are open during the
construction.

They also worked with City staff to draft code amendments
that dramatically reduced the regulations and fees for these types of businesses. Ultimately, Milers say that their goal is to help
customers find what they are looking for and have a great experience while
doing it and, together, they can accomplish this much better than on their own.

The restaurant received funding from the City of
Minneapolis’ Great Streets program, which helped turn the vacant lot into
an award-winning architectural project and vibrant space. It also supports the
commercial revitalization of the east end of Lake Street, satisfying the need
for a new neighborhood restaurant.

Architect Ben Awes stated that CityDeskStudio’s approach to
creating the new Peppers and Fries was to “fit in and stand out,” using
existing materials such as reclaimed wood for the tables and bar tops and
finishing the concrete floors. By staying true to the building’s original
structures, Peppers & Fries is now a unique and positive addition to the
Longfellow neighborhood.

Business Profile: Woodchuck

Photos provided by Woodchuck USA

Woodchuck
USA is a USA-made
brand that manufactures real-wood products with a mission to “bring nature back
to people” and jobs to the United States. Founded by Benjamin VandenWymelenberg
as an architecture student at the University of Minnesota (and originally only
making iPhone cases), Woodchuck has grown tremendously. The company now offers
a diverse range of products, from laptop cases to journals to flasks, and
services such as corporate gifting to clientele both nationally and
internationally. This spring, Woodchuck was awarded the Breakout Business of the Year by the Minneapolis Regional
Chamber of Commerce.

A small, young company of 17 full-time
employees, the Woodchuck team relies on its ability to push boundaries in order
to complete any task handed to them regardless of the scale or time-frame.
After receiving support from the City’s Two Percent Loan Program, the company was able to
purchase a large, high-powered laser cutter, allowing them to explore new
markets (such as commercial interiors and large wooden art) and triple its
capacity to keep up with rising demand for Woodchuck products.

Woodchuck’s immense growth since
its start is reflected by their developments in products and clients. A company
that once sold iPhone cases in Saran-wrapped packaging now distributes a
variety of high-end wooden products to clients including Fulton Brewery,
Cambria, Sun Country Airlines, and the Minnesota Vikings.

Made Here Market: Loring Alley Rally

July 19th
marks the beginning of the Made
Here Market, a series of pop-up markets (taking
place as part of the Loring Alley Rally) featuring locally made fine art and goods.
The market, hosted in collaboration with the Third
Bird Restaurant, runs
each Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. until August 30th and is located
in the Loring Corners alley. Funded in part by theCity of Minneapolis Great Streetsprogram as a way to generate activity
to the alley, the Made Here Market is
expected to bring thousands of visitors to the market in addition to live
music, food and drinks.

At the
market, visitors can find artists working in all mediums, vintage sellers, and
textile and craft supplies vendors. Made
Here Market vendors can exhibit their work for up to three weeks, making
each Sunday unique with new artists, food and music.

Launched in
2013, Made Here is a Hennepin Theatre
Trust initiative to bring more people to the downtown Minneapolis Cultural
District. It brings art to public spaces in ways like pop-up parks, live
performances and rotating exhibitions.

City Partners with Nextdoor, the Private Social Networks for Neighborhoods

The
City of Minneapolis announced in June that it will be partnering withNextdoor,
a private social network for neighborhoods, to improve citywide and
neighbor-to-neighbor communications.

The integration with Nextdoor will enable the City of Minneapolis, including the
Minneapolis Police Department, the Minneapolis Fire Department, and other City
departments to use Nextdoor to build stronger, safer communities with the help
of Minneapolis residents. Specifically, the Minneapolis Police Department and
Nextdoor neighborhoods will be able to work together to increase safety and
strengthen virtual neighborhood watch.

Nextdoor
has proven to be an essential and well-adopted tool for Minneapolis residents.
Most Minneapolis neighborhoods already use Nextdoor, representing 95 percent of
the City.

With
Nextdoor, Minneapolis residents can create private neighborhood websites to
share information, including neighborhood public safety issues, community
events and activities, local services, and even lost pets. The City will be
able to post information, such as important news, services, programs, free
events, and safety notifications to Nextdoor websites within the city.

Nextdoor
is a free tool for residents and the City. Each Minneapolis neighborhood has
its own private Nextdoor neighborhood website, accessible only to residents of
that neighborhood. Neighborhoods establish and self-manage their own Nextdoor
website and the City will not be able to access residents’ websites, contact
information, or content. All members must verify that they live within the
neighborhood before joining Nextdoor. Information shared on Nextdoor is
password protected and cannot be accessed by Google or other search engines.

City Sponsors in Somali Independence Day Festival

Photos by City of Minneapolis

On Saturday June 13th, the Minneapolis community
celebrated the 55th Somali Independence Day with a festival on West
Lake Street organized byKa Joog,
a Somali nonprofit. In addition to observing Somali Independence Day, the event
promoted diversity in Minneapolis.

With a theme of Education Building and Community Ties, the festival featured a range of activities, from live music and dancing
to East African cuisine to art and poetry. The City of Minneapolis supported
the event as an event sponsor as well as by distributing information about City
programs and services to event attendees. City of Minneapolis departments, including Human Resources,
Community Planning and Economic Development, Civil Rights, Minneapolis
Department of Health, Neighborhood and Community Relations, and the Minneapolis
Police Department were in attendance.

STEP-UP Receives Grant to Place More Youth into Jobs

Photos by City of Minneapolis and AchieveMpls

The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED)
– Office of Youth Development has selected STEP-UP for funding under the Minnesota
Youth at Work Competitive Grant. The STEP-UP summer youth employment program
will receive $750,000 for July 1, 2015 - July 1, 2016 and $750,000 for July 1,
2016 - July 1, 2017. This will enable STEP-UP to place 150 more young people
into summer jobs.

DEED’s priorities, impact areas and goals for all proposals included:

Summer and/or year-round work experience and introduction to career
pathways for economically disadvantaged or at-risk youth, ages 14 through 24

Increased exposure to in-demand jobs important to regional economies

Introduction and promotion of career pathways and skill acquisition

Promotion of mastery of work readiness competencies and 21st Century
skills

Provision of high-quality worksites and overall participant and
employer satisfaction

Through the STEP-UP program, Minneapolis youth work in a wide range of
jobs at Twin Cities employers. The program is designed to engage young people
in internships that explore their career interests, gain skills, make
professional connections, and prepare them for meaningful work.

Even More Parklets This Summer in Minneapolis

To
make it easier for people to stop, relax and enjoy Minneapolis, the City has
expanded its parklet program this summer, installing five parklets in different
parts of the city.

The
parklets are built in the street right next to the curb. In an area of about
two parking spaces, the parklets have a deck, planters, chairs and tables for
anyone to use. All of the parklets in the program are located in commercial corridors, and
each one has a host business nearby to maintain it on a day-to-day
basis.

Parklets
enhance neighborhoods and make them better places for residents and visitors to
spend time. They also encourage walking and biking, and help draw people to
shops and restaurants in our communities. The five parklets in the program will
be removed from the streets at the end of October.

The
goal of the parklet program is to make the City more livable, walkable, and
beautiful through public and private partnerships. Three parklets in the
program are City-owned and two more parklets have been purchased, funded and
will be maintained by local businesses and community organizations. The City
will begin accepting 2016 parklet season applications this fall.

About this newsletterGrowing MPLS is published monthly by the City of Minneapolis Community Planning and Economic Development Department. If you have questions, please contact rose.lindsay@minneapolismn.gov.

For reasonable accommodations or alternative formats please contact Rose Lindsay. People who are deaf or hard of hearing can use a relay service to call 311 agents at 612-673-3000. TTY users can call 612-673-2157 or 612-673-2626.